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E.Cube Mission: the Environmental Cubesat E.CUBE MISSION: THE ENVIRONMENTAL CUBESAT Camilla Colombo(1), Mirko Trisolini(1), Francesca Scala(1), Marco Paolo Brenna(1), Juan Luis Gonzalo(1), Stefano Antonetti(2), Francesco Di Tolle(2), Roberto Redaelli(2), Francesco Lisi(2), Luca Marrocchi(3), Marco Alberti(3), Alessandro Francesconi(4), Lorenzo Olivieri(4), Massimo Tipaldi(5) (1) Dep. of Aerospace Science and Technology, Politecnico di Milano, Milano, Italy, Email: [email protected] (2) D-Orbit SpA, Viale Risorgimento 57, 22073 Fino Mornasco, Como, Italy, Email: [email protected] (3) Temis, Via G. Donizetti, 20, 20011 Corbetta (MI), Italy, Email: [email protected] (4) University of Padova, Padova, Italy, Email: [email protected] (5) Intelligentia, Via Del Pomerio 7, 82100 Benevento, Italy, Email: [email protected] collected data about non-trackable fragment objects, (3) ABSTRACT to characterise the atmosphere for more accurate re-entry The e.Cube mission aims at contributing to the predictions and the thermomechanical loads experienced advancement of technologies and methodologies by the spacecraft during re-entry. dedicated to space debris mitigation and remediation (1) A 12U CubeSat will be deployed in Low Earth Orbit to increase spacecraft autonomy in performing CAMs, (LEO) where the operational phase will be dedicated to (2) to support space debris modelling with in-orbit three experiments. During the first phase, the collected data about non-trackable fragment objects, (3) autonomous CAM experiment will be carried out, to characterise the atmosphere for more accurate re-entry consisting of several in-flight CAM tests for simulated predictions and the thermomechanical loads experienced close approaches with a virtual debris. For each test, a by the spacecraft during re-entry. This paper presents the sequence of virtual Conjunction Data Messages (CDM) preliminary mission analysis, payload selection and will be generated on ground and uploaded to the system design for the mission. spacecraft. The CAM payload processor will then decide if and how to perform the CAM making use of artificial INTRODUCTION intelligence. A particle detection device, exposed in the The space surrounding our planet is densely populated by frontal side of the spacecraft, will collect over the time of an increasing number of space debris, whose number is one year the highest amount possible of sub-millimetre expected to grow in the next decade due to in-orbit particles to be used to validate in-use statistical explosions, material deterioration, and in-orbit collisions. distributions of non-trackable objects. Finally, during the Space debris poses a threat to the current and future last phase of the mission an EOL manoeuvre will be access to space. While debris objects larger than 5-10 cm implemented. During the re-entry phase an experiment can be tracked from Earth and need to be avoided through through the re-entry data collector will characterise the the execution of Collision Avoidance Manoeuvres thermosphere in the region below 200 km, through some (CAMs), smaller debris are not currently catalogued, in-situ measurements, in particular temperature and therefore statistical distributions are used to quantify the pressure. collision risk in different orbital regions and to define The role of the e.Cube mission is to contribute to the mitigation guidelines through long-term evolution advancement of technologies and methodologies models. Moreover, while the design of End-Of-Life dedicated to space debris mitigation and remediation. (EOL) disposal manoeuvres is desirable to mitigate the Three key areas have been identified: the development of number of inoperative satellites, uncertainties related to autonomous CAM algorithms, the detection and our limited knowledge of the solar activity and its measurement of untraceable space debris, and the interaction with the atmosphere make accurate re-entry characterisation of the upper atmosphere and of the predictions a challenging task [1]. satellite disposal mechanism. These three emerging areas The e.Cube mission [2] aims at contributing to the are also the research pillars of the COMPASS project, advancement of technologies and methodologies funded by the European research Council at Politecnico dedicated to space debris mitigation and remediation (1) di Milano [3]. The tools and techniques developed within to increase spacecraft autonomy in performing CAMs, this project have been already brought to their proof of (2) to support space debris modelling with in-orbit concept thanks to projects funded by the European Space LProc.eave 8th foo Europeanter em pConferencety – The on C onSpacefer eDebrisnce f (virtual),ooter w Darmstadt,ill be add Germany,ed to th 20–23e firs tApril page 2021, of epublishedach pa pbye rthe. ESA Space Debris Office Ed. T. Flohrer, S. Lemmens & F. Schmitz, (http://conference.sdo.esoc.esa.int, May 2021) Agency (ESA) and the Italian Space Agency (ASI), for Space Safety (MISS) software tool which couple the however the status of the such algorithms is still at the uncertainties in the environment model and orbit preliminary operational software development. It is the determination measurements [4]. Supervised artificial aim of the e.Cube mission to develop operational intelligence techniques will be employed for the planning software for Space flight and on-orbit experiments, and and decision making in the operations for autonomous to send back to Earth relevant scientific data that will be Collision Avoidance Manoeuvres (CAM). During the used to validate long-term evolution models for space CAM in-flight experiment, synthetic conjunction data debris, re-entry prediction, and to improve autonomous messages, simulating the possible collision threat with a CAM for the future Space Traffic Management (STM). debris, will be transmitted to the spacecraft and the CAM The data and results of the e.Cube mission will be used command module will autonomously decide, compute, to validate tools and techniques currently used within the and command the required manoeuvre to be performed space debris community: long-term evolution models for [5]. An expected output of this objective is to advance the space debris, re-entry prediction, and to improve proposed CAM algorithms to autonomy level E4 E4 autonomous CAM for the future space traffic (goal commanding) according to “ECSS-E-ST-70-11C – management. In line with the ideal of the e.Cube mission Space segment operability”. to contribute to the international discussion and cooperation on space debris mitigation, all the data and Obj. 2 – DEBRIS. Characterisation of results of the on-board experiments will be freely shared untraceable space debris objects to update and with the whole debris community to be used for improve space debris environmental models advancing the definition of space debris mitigation (BRIS). guidelines. Obj. 2 will be fulfilled through the design of a particle detection device, which will characterise in-situ sub- MISSION OBJECTIVES millimetre level particles in Low Earth Orbit by sensing The e.Cube mission aims at participating to the effort in the frequency, mass, energy, and direction of debris Space Situational Awareness and Space Traffic particles. The Particle Detection Device (PDD) will be Management, by providing a significant contribution to pointed in the velocity direction with 1-degree accuracy, the development of key areas with the aim of ensuring a to maximise the particle collection. To properly safer and more sustainable access to Space. In the rapidly characterise the sub-millimetre debris (less than 1 mm) evolving scenario of New Space activities, large and meteoroids environment, the PDD shall constellations, and the increasing dependence of our collect at least 200 particles during the spacecraft daily life on Space, space agencies have identified the operating life. mitigation of space debris as one of the main goals for a sustainable development of space activities in the near Obj. 3 – RE-ENTRY. Characterisation of the future. The scientific objectives of the e.Cube mission, upper atmosphere for more accurate re-entry represented in Figure 1, address distinct but interlinked prediction and of the thermomechanical loads aspects of space sustainability, spanning the entire experienced by the spacecraft during re-entry. lifetime of any space mission. The first two objectives Obj. 3 aims at reducing the model uncertainties on the investigate the two sides of the same spectrum: the post-mission disposal, and specifically on the re-entry collision avoidance of traceable debris on one side and phase, which arise due to the atmospheric modelling the improvement of the damage assessment from (especially the solar activity) and to the satellite demise untraceable debris on the other. They will be explained in and break-up process, a process for which little to no the next Sections. mission-related data is currently available. This objective will be achieved by arranging a distributed network of Obj. 1 – CAM. Development, validation and sensors inside the spacecraft that will measure the testing of on-board algorithms for autonomous evolution of the acceleration, pressure, and temperature collision avoidance during the re-entry phase to record the mechanical and To demonstrate autonomous collision avoidance thermal loads suffered by the spacecraft. The experiment capabilities during at least three relevant in-flight shall collect data in the region between 200 km and 100 scenarios. This will
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